Can tear strip removers



Sept. 27, 1960 T. L. DEAN 2,954,142

can TEAR STRIP REMOVERS Filed April 4, 1958 Awea/Zr;

, 77/0/2205 Lpean Un d S te Patent CAN TEAR STRIP REMOVERS Thomas L. Dean, Blanchard, Okla., assignor of one-tenth to Gadget-Of-The-Month Club, Inc., North Hollywood, Calif., a corporation of California Filed Apr. 4, 1958, Ser. No. 726,410

7 Claims. (Cl. 220-52) This invention relates to new and useful improvements in can openers, particularly'those which are adapted to open a can by removing a tear strip therefrom, and the principal object of the invention is to assure uniformly even removal of the tear strip so that the can opening operation may be easily and efliciently performed.

In conventional devices of this type it is customary to employ a slotted shaft or key on which the tear strip is wound during removal and unless such a shaft or key is at all times maintained in parallel relation to the axis of the can, uneven winding and often breakage of the tear stn'p results. The present invention eliminates this disadvantage by assuring that the axis of the shaft or key is parallel to the axis of the can, this being attained by the provision of means on the device for clampingly but slidingly engaging the usual rim at the top of the can, wherethe shaft portion 14a between the holder 11 and a hand by to sustain the shaft or key in a proper position relative to the'can while the tear strip is being removed.

Another important feature of the invention resides in the provision of means for accommodating the tear strip on the shaft or key in such manner that the shaft or key is closely adjacent and parallel to the side wall of the can notwithstanding the increasing diameter of the strip as it is wound on the shaft or key.

Some of the advantages of the invention reside in its simplicity of construction, in its efficient and dependable operation, and in its adaptability to convenient and economical manufacture.

With the above more important objects and features in view and such other objects and features as may become apparent as this specification proceeds, the invention will be understood from the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, wherein like characters of reference are employed to designate like parts, and wherein:

Figure 1 is a top plan view of the invention applied to a can, the latter being shown fragmentarily and in dotted lines;

Figure 2 is a vertical sectional view, taken substantially in the plane of the line 2-2 in Figure 1;

Figure 3 is an underside plan view of the'invention pel" Figure 4 is an elevational View thereof, taken in the direction of the arrow 4 in Figure 1; and

Figure 5 is a top plan view of a modified form of the invention.

Referring now to the accompanying drawings in detail, the cantear strip remover is designated generally by the reference numeral 10 and embodies in its construction a holder 11 which is configurated substantially as shown and is provided at one side thereof with a recess 12 and with a centrally disposed slot 13. A tear strip winding shaft or key 14 has a reduced, screw-threaded portion 14a which is rotatable and laterally slidable in the slot 13, the shaft 14 also being provided with the usual slot or kerf 15 to receive the end of the tear strip preparatory to winding.

An internally screw-threaded spacer 16 is positioned on crank 17 which the shaft portion 14a also carries. A suitable nut 18 is employed to lock the crank -17 on the shaft portion 14a against the spacer 16. As will be,

noted, a shoulder 14b exists on the shaft 14 at the end of the reduced portion 14a and the space between this shoulder and the spacer 16 is such relative to the thickness of the holder 11 as to permit the shaft to slide laterally in the slot 13 as well as to rotate therein, but without rocking or otherwise becoming displaced out of I its normal perpendicular position relative to the holder.

The holder 11 is provided with a pair of integral, downturned edge portions constituting guides 19 which are disposed at opposite sides of the shaft 14 and are engageable with the inside of the usual upstanding rim 20 provided at the top of a can 21, the guides 19 being angularly disposed relative to each other so as to conform generally to the curvature of the can and properly engage the can rim. The guides 19 are adapted for coaction with a pair of rim engaging elements 22a provided on a clamping member 22 and configurated substantially as shown in Figure 3.

The member 22 is slidably attached to the underside of the holder 11 by a pair of headed pins 23, it being noted that a spacer plate .24 is interposed between the holder 11 and the clamping member 22 so that the elements 22a are disposed substantially at the level of the lower edges of the guides 19.

The spacer plate 24 conforms generally to the shape of the member 22 but its edge portions 24a terminate .short of the elements 22a, as indicated in Figure 3. The

plate 24 is rigidly secured to the underside of the holder 11 by a plurality of rivets 25, or the like, and also by a rivet or headed pin 26 which serves as a pivot for a lever '27 hereinafter to be described. The member 22 is providedwith suitable slots 28 to receive the aforementioned pins 23, whereby the member 22 may slide relative to the holder 11 to move the elements 220 toward or away from the guides 19.

If so preferred, the spacer plate 24 may be constituted by an integral part of the holder 11, thus avoiding the rangement being such that when the lever is moved in the direction of the arrow 30 in Figure 3, the member 22 is slid as indicated at 31 so that the elements 22a thereof are moved toward the guides 19.

When the invention is placed in use, it is applied to the upper portion of the can 21 so that the guides 19 are disposed at the inside of the can rim 20 and the elements 22a are at the outside of the rim. After the end of the tear strip (not shown) is inserted in the kerf 14 of the shaft 14, the lever 27 is moved in the direction of the arrow 30, thus causing the clamping elements 22a to slide toward the guides 19. In this manner the can rim 20 will be clampingly held between the guides 19 and the elements 22a, yet this clamping action, although being sufficient to properly support the device on the can, permits the device to slide along the rim of the can when rotation is imparted to the shaft 14 by the crank;

17 to effect winding of the tear strip on the shaft.

in parallel to the axis of the can and to the side wall of the can from which the tear strip is being torn. Thus,

Ce Patented Sept. 27, 1960;

the tear strip will be wound onthe shaft 14 in a uniformly even manner and the can opening operation will be performed with ease and convenience, without any danger of the tear strip twisting, windinguneve nly, or becoming broken.

When the strip winding operation is commenced, the shaft 14 is disposed closely adjacent the side wall of the can. Then, as the winding operation continues and the diameter of the strip Wound on the shaft 14 increases, the shaft will automatically shift itself laterally in the slot 13, away from the can, so that the periphery of the wound strip will always be closely adjacent to the can side wall.

The accompanying Figure 5 illustrates a slightly modified form of the invention wherein the hand crank 17a is suitably secured to a shaft 32 which has its axis parallel to the plane of the holder 11a rather than perpendicular thereto, as does the winding shaft 14. The shaft 32 is rotatably journalled in apertured ears 33, 34 provided on the holder 11a, and a worm 35 is secured to the shaft 32 between these ears. The worm meshes with a pinion 36 secured to the winding shaft 14, so that when the hand crank 17a is turned, the winding shaft will be rotated through the medium of the reduction gearing 35, 36.

As in the embodiment previously described, the slot 13 in the holder permits the Winding shaft 14 to shift when the diameter of the wound strip increases, such shifting movement being accompanied by a corresponding movement of the pinion 36 along the worm 35.

While in the foregoing there have been shown and described the preferred embodiments of the invention, various modifications may become apparent to those skilled in the art to which the invention relates. Accordingly, it is not desired to limit the invention to this disclosure, and various modifications may be resorted to, such as may lie within the spirit and scope of the appended claims.

What is claimed as new is:

1 In a can tear strip remover, the combination of a holder, a strip winding shaft rotatably journalled in said holder, a cam rim engaging guide provided on said holder, a rim clamping member mounted on the holder for movement toward and away from said guide, and means for moving said clamping member comprising a lever pivoted to said holder and having a cam portion in operative engagement with said clamping member.

2. In a can tear strip remover, the combination of a holder, a strip winding shaft extending through and rotatably journalled in said holder, a can rim engaging guide provided at one edge of the holder, a clamping member slidably attached to said holder and including a rim engaging portion movable toward and away from said guide, anda lever pivoted to the holder and having a cam portion in operative engagement with said clamping member for sliding the same.

3. The device as defined in claim 2 together with a hand crank provided on said strip winding shaft.

4. The device as defined in claim 2 together with a hand crank rotatably mounted on said, holder, and gearing operatively connecting said crank to said strip winding shaft.

5. A can tear strip remover, comprising in combination, a holder provided with a substantially centrally disposed slot, a strip winding shaft rotatable and laterally slidable in said slot, a pair of can rim engaging guides provided on said holder at opposite sides of said shaft, a clamping member slidably attached to said holder and including a' pair of rim engaging elements movable toward and away from the respective guides, a lever pivoted substantially centrally to the holder, and a cam portion provided on said lever and operatively engaging an edge of said clamping member for sliding the same.

6; The device as defined in claim 5 together with a set of pins provided on said holder and attaching said clamping member thereto, said clamping member being provided with slots receiving said pins therein.

7. The device as defined in claim 5 wherein an edge portion of said clamping member is cam-surfaced for cooperation with said cam portion of said lever.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,759,364 Ouigg May 20, 1930 2,140,151 Dazey' Dec. 13, 1938 2,286,039 Reynolds June 9, 1942 2,625,294 Bodin et al. Jan. 13, 1953 2,868,409 Galos Jan. 13, 1959 2,896,322 Vose July 28, 1959' 

